Is it cheeky to get a hot water?

[Itsgonnabeacoldone]

In a cafe? I hate paying 1.80 ish for a tea I don't really like. I'd rather hot water, but it's a bit embarrassing that some places don't charge.

You sound fussy imo. Just do what others have said and ask for tea with the bag on the side. Give the tea bag to a friend who will like it.

What’s paleo cake? Something to do with horses?

if I were at a cafe with someone and they were sat there with a cup of hot water they got for free because I bought coffee and cake I'd think they are tight as a duck's arse, a misery guts, too, and that would be the last time I went out with them.

I’d ask them if there as somewhere they would prefer to meet next time where they could eat or drink something.

Its fine if you're happy to pay the same price as a herbal tea and make sure you mention you're happy/want to be charged Itsgonnabe .

As others say if you have a herbal tea (tea bag plus hot water) the money you pay is only a penny or so for the tea bag, a penny or so for the electricity to boil the water and warm water/ time to wash the cup or for the disposable cup, a few pence for the minute worth of wages for the person who serves it to you, and the rest of the price is effectively a cover charge.

For that reason paying the same price as a cup of black tea/ herbal tea for a cup of hot water is perfectly valid, but paying the same as a latte/ all milk hot chocolate with cream and marsh mallows or at the other extreme expecting it for free (which you don't) wouldn't be.

If you want a hot water then I would serve it to you in a hot water jug and charge you for a cup of tea.
The tea bag costs 1p. The other costs are the purchase / replacement price of the cup, saucer, jug and teaspoon. The member of staff to take your order, bring it to you, remove it whe you have finished, wipe down the table, take the cup and saucer etc through to the kitchen. Then the KP has to wash it up , dry it and put it back. This takes about ten minutes for all of these actions. Whichis over £1 in staff pay. Plus my contribution to staff members NI, uniform, name badge etc. The there's the cost of the facilities- the chair, table, the loo, loo roll, loo cleaner, heating, water and soap to wash your hands, paper towels to dry your hands. Rent, rates, insurance, electricity, telephone, Internet, - every customer has to contribute towards these costs. Even the serviette you used to wipe your mouth costs 1p and has to be factored in.
Trust me, somebody who come in and just has a hot water is not what a cafe wants or needs. You have to pay for a cup/pot of tea. We all want somebody who comes in , has a coffee/ tea and cake/ scone etc. And leaves in twenty mins!!!!

Mind you I'm sure they sell fruit in many coffee chains - though I must say I rarely go to them any more so maybe I'm out of touch. I'm sure I've seen bananas and apples for sale.

Oh, and BTW. When you buy a coffee to go the most expensive part of it is the cup. Not the coffee. The disposable cup and lid.

I get hot water all the time. I don't drink tea or coffee. Usually I'd order something else with it. Some places charge and some don't. I'd find it very odd if a friend judged me for it.
The only time I've ever had problems with it was in Schiphol airport. It took a 20 minute discussion that ended with me buying a pot of tea with the teabag on the side even though I told them they could keep the teabag

I work on aircraft and for the last 8 years or so we have had a well known brand of coffee’s, tea’s etc which come with own cups, lids etc.

On an average flight I probably get asked for hot water around 10 times. Some passengers aren’t happy when it comes in two small plastic cups inside each other, rather than a large Starbucks type card one.

We are held for losses and those cups are part of our bar.

I'd rather not have any friends that were judgemental about my dietary choices, luckily I don't and all my friends are lovley.

Thanks crazy

In a budget airline how much is just the hot water out of interest? If you are buying Starbucks Costa stuff then it will be much more wholesale than the 1p.

Even long haul with free tea and coffee they often struggle to get you hot water.

I use DFDS to go back and forth to the UK. They changed their coffee and tea supplier this year, and instead of Twinings and decentish coffee; the tea is now bitter, and the coffee leaves an oily aftertaste for days. I get a cup of boiling water, point out I haven't used a teabag, and tell them when they change their supplier back to what it was, I will happily buy tea and coffee again. The people on the till either don't charge me, as I'm buying breakfast or a cookie, or charge a token amount. They agree about the quality of the tea.

A passenger would never be charged for hot water.

I always offer them a slice of lemon too

Oh that's good to hear, is this on a 4 or 5 star airline?

It isn't cheeky to ask for hot water. It's cheeky to expect to get it for free. I sometimes bring my own teabag if I don't expect to enjoy what the cafe has. I usually tell the staff, "I want to buy a cup of tea, but don't bother with the teabag as I've brought my own / prefer to drink hot water."

In a cafe, the teabag is an insignificant tiny fraction of the cost of the cup of tea. You are paying for the heating, staff time, cleaning costs, cup, rent, rates, etc.

For me it's quite simple as long as something is being bought so as to make it worth having the seat and table being used then I don't see it as an issue

I think in that case expatinscotland you will hate a lot of people. Happens all that time!

'I think in that case expatinscotland you will hate a lot of people. Happens all that time!'

Thankfully, never seen it happen because I don't work in a restaurant, but I also don't hang out with miserable fusspots or food bores.

I agree with OP. I like to go for a drink with friends, I prefer not to have sugary, caffeinated or milky drinks (or their processed alternatives). The choices really are limited and it's not really fussy to want water surely, just awkward that there's no accepted protocol for getting it. As with OP I'm perfectly happy to pay for it.

I ask for a hot water, say I'm happy to be charged but I've bought my own tea bag.

Reason being caffeine upsets my tummy as does milk, so I have a fruit style tea, and most places don't have them (or any I like).

If they have the tea I like I'm happy to order that.

Same if I'm on my own or with people